PAC-10 FOOTBALL AWARDS AND ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM ANNOUNCED

WALNUT CREEK, Calif.--Tailback Jacquizz Rodgers of Oregon State has been selected both Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year, middle linebacker Rey Maualuga of USC the Pat Tillman Defensive Player of the Year and Mike Riley of Oregon State the Pac-10 Coach of the
Year. The award winners are selected by the Pac-10 head football coaches.

Offensive Player of the Year & Freshman of the Year Jacquizz Rodgers, TB, Oregon State: Rodgers becomes the first freshman in Conference history to be named offensive player of the year. The frosh from Richmond, Texas, burst upon the Pac-10 scene this year becoming just the third freshman to rush for 1,000 yards in Conference history. Rodgers took over as the starter in the second game of the season and caught the nation's attention in game four when he rushed for 186 yards and two touchdowns in Oregon State's 27-21 upset win against No. 1-ranked USC and its topflight defense. With a bowl game still to go, Rodgers has rushed 259 times for a Pac-10 freshman record 1,253 yards (4.8) and 11 touchdowns. He has added 29 receptions for 247 yards and one touchdown to give him an even 1,500 all-purpose yards for the season. Rodgers led the Beavers in rushing in nine of 11 games and surpassed the 100-yard mark seven times. He was named Pac-10 offensive player of the week three times and national player of the week following his performance against USC. Rodgers becomes the first Oregon State player to be named Pac-10 offensive player of the year since the award was inaugurated in 1975 and just the second player of the year overall from OSU, joining defensive end Bill Swancutt, who earned defensive player of the year honors in 2004.

Pat Tillman Defensive Player of the Year Rey Maualuga, MLB, USC: Maualuga, a senior from Eureka, Calif., anchors the USC defense that leads the Pac-10 in every major statistical category and leads the nation in scoring defense (7.8 points per game) and total defense (206.1 yards per game). The Trojan defense posted three shutouts this season and has allowed only 11 touchdowns in 12 games. Maualuga is a first-team All-Pac-10 selection for the third straight year and is a first-team All-America pick this season. The defensive player of the game in the Rose Bowl last season, Maualuga is a finalist for the Butkus Award, Lombardi Award and Bednarik Award. He leads the Trojans in tackles with 73 stops and has posted 267 career tackles. He led the Trojans in tackles in eight games this year. Maualuga is the second straight Trojan to earn Pac-10 defensive player of the year honors, following tackle Sedrick Ellis, who won the award last season.

Coach of the Year Mike Riley, Oregon State: Oregon State had the fewest returning starters in the Pac-10 entering this season and was picked to finish seventh in the Conference. The Beavers promptly lost their first two games of the season to make that prediction look accurate. But a stunning upset of then top-ranked USC, still the only blemish on the Trojans' record this year, and an October-November win streak of six straight games before losing to rival Oregon in the Civil War in the season finale catapulted the Beavers to an 8-4 mark. Included was a record of 7-2 and a tie for second in Conference play, good for a berth in the Brut Sun Bowl. Riley has upped his eight-year record as head coach at Oregon State to 55-42, the third-most victories in OSU history behind Lon Stiner and Tommy Prothro. Riley becomes just the third Oregon State coach to be voted Pac-10 coach of the year, following Dave Kragthorpe in 1989 and current Arizona State coach Dennis Erickson in 2000.

PAC-10 Announces Players Of The Week

WALNUT CREEK, Calif.--Tailback Jacquizz Rodgers of Oregon State, safety Taylor Mays of USC and kicker Thomas Weber of Arizona State have been named U.S. Bank Pac-10 Players of the Week in football, Commissioner Tom Hansen announced.

Rodgers, a freshman from Richmond, Texas, keyed Oregon State's offense in the Beavers' 34-6 win at UCLA. Rodgers rushed 31 times for 144 yards and one touchdown and added three receptions for eight yards and another score. Rodgers established a new Pac-10 record for rushing yards by a freshman as he upped his season total to 1,089 yards, surpassing the freshman rushing record of 1,069 by Stanford's Darrin Nelson. Rodgers becomes just the third freshman in Conference history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season. It marks the second consecutive week and third time this year the freshman has been named offensive player of the week.

Mays, a junior from Seattle, Wash., was one of many defensive standouts for USC in the Trojans' 17-3 win against No. 21-ranked California. Mays had five tackles, four solo, and was credited with four pass breakups. The USC defense did not allow a touchdown from a California offense that entered the game averaging 36.4 points per game. It marked the first time a Jeff Tedford-coached Cal team did not score a touchdown in a game. The Trojan defense limited the Golden Bears to 13 first downs and 165 yards total offense (27 rushing, 138 passing) and posted four quarterback sacks (-34 yards).

Weber, a sophomore from Downey, Calif., had a busy afternoon in Arizona State's 39-19 win at Washington. Weber was three-for-three on field goal attempts, connecting from 34, 37 and 29 yards, and perfect on four PATs. In addition, he averaged 41.2 yards on four punts, with a long boot of 56 yards and two punts downed inside the 20-yard line, plus he handled kickoff duties for the Sun Devils.

Also nominated for offensive player of the week honors were running backs Jeremiah Johnson of Oregon, Nicolas Grigsby of Arizona and C.J. Gable of USC and receiver Mike Jones of Arizona State. Also nominated on defense were safeties Troy Nolan of Arizona State and T.J. Ward of Oregon State and linebackers Ronnie Palmer of Arizona, Keaton Kristick of Oregon State and Reggie Carter of UCLA. Joe Perkins of Arizona, Morgan Flint of Oregon, Johnny Hekker of Oregon State and Aaron Perez of UCLA were nominated for special teams play.